Popolare di Bari, all the union counters against Carrus and Mattarella (Mcc)
The reasons for the protests of the unions against the Banca Popolare di Bari controlled by central Mediocredito (MCC, Invitalia group). The article by Emanuela Rossi
A discussion table to overcome the salary cut plan and to start the relaunch of Banca Popolare di Bari, saved from bankruptcy in 2019 – after the receivership of the Bank of Italy – thanks to the intervention of Mediocredito Centrale and since June 2020 it has become a joint stock company. This is requested by the sector unions – Fabi, First Cisl, Fisac Cgil, Uilca and Unisin – who called a strike yesterday, the first in the history of the institute, and two principals in Bari and Teramo.
According to the Radiocor news agency, which quotes union sources from the company, membership would have been around 90% and almost 200 branches of the total 217 would have remained closed.
THE ACCUSATIONS OF POP BARI WORKERS
There are essentially two issues that have led the workers of Popolare di Bari led by the CEO, Cristiano Carrus (in the photo), to fold their arms and they are all linked to the rescue plan of the institute which today can count on 217 branches, above all in the South, and on 2,180 employees. In particular, the request is made to overcome the solidarity contract – which for three years has accounted for 6.67% of wages and which is expected to last until the end of 2024 – and to start the bank's relaunch project without hesitation.
On March 29, the unions met the company for the conciliation procedure, necessary to call a strike, but report that they have not received feedback as well as during the presentation of the Mediocredito Centrale business plan led by the CEO, Bernardo Mattarella, " the company did not give clear and concrete answers”.
THE 2022 BUDGET
Meanwhile, Popolare di Bari closed 2022 with a loss of 45.34 million euros, up on the loss of 170 million in 2021. Loans to customers grew (5.30 billion, +4.4% year-on-year ) and direct deposits (6.39 billion, +0.6%); indirect deposits, on the other hand, remained stable (3.67 billion compared to 3.70 billion at the end of 2021).
Minus sign for operating costs which fell by 18.4% to 260.85 million thanks above all to a contraction in personnel expenses (127.01 million, -35.1%).
THE UNIONS: IMMEDIATELY A TABLE FOR COMPARISON WITH THE COMPANY, A TEST BENCH FOR THE GOVERNMENT
Given this situation, the trade union organizations are asking for "a discussion table and the start of correct trade union relations to put the future of the bank at the center", as highlighted by the general secretary of Fisac CGIL, Susy Esposito. It is clear, he explains, that "there is an urgent need to discuss crucial issues for the future" of the institution and which "affect the parent company Mediocredito Centrale: from wage recovery, in the light of the cut in working hours, to organization of work, so that the bank's relaunch strategy is clear”. At the moment, notes Esposito, "there is no idea of the future, on the contrary, management is emptying the bank, merging branches and continuing with desertification and abandonment of the territory" and "improving the accounts is only the result of sacrifice , organizational and salary, of male and female workers".
The Uilca national secretariat and the Uilca Banca Popolare di Bari national coordination say they are "alongside the workers aware of the umpteenth sacrifice they are called to, reiterating that the recovery of Banca Popolare di Bari is an essential element to favor a presence in the credit sector in the South to support families, businesses and local development. The mobilization action therefore also represents a reminder of the need to place this virtuous process in favor of the development of the credit sector in the South, within which the possibility of creating a Bank for the South must rediscover space".
Raising the bar Riccardo Colombani, general secretary of First Cisl, who – after recalling the sacrifices of the institute's workers and the need for dialogue with the company – also calls Palazzo Chigi into question. “The investment bank project for the South, currently at a standstill, needs to be relaunched because it represents an important opportunity for territories that have seen the disengagement of large banking groups in recent years. For a government that sets itself ambitious objectives and legislature – he concludes – that of Popolare di Bari therefore represents an important test bench for putting new credit policies in the service of development".
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/economia/banca-popolare-di-bari-carrus-mattarella/ on Tue, 18 Apr 2023 05:49:17 +0000.